Ombre
by Silent Strikes
Summary: "Even the smallest person can change the course of the future." - OC insert. {rewrite of Reincarnation of a Water Lily}
1. I

_{ Disclaimer: I think it goes without saying that I do not own Naruto. __Warning: Mild violence & language. }_

_/ Please do not repost this story on ffnet or any other website without my permission /_

_A/N:_

_A big thank you to The Wistful Bloom for being a really patient and wonderful beta-reader! Also, a big thank you to my friend Aimee for making the cover image and getting me interesting in BBC Sherlock. You're the best._

For all my old readers_: thank you for everyone who followed, read and enjoyed RoaW! Unfortunately, I could not continue that version of the story. __When I started RoaW, I was brand new to fanfiction. After being active more than a year on this site, I find that my writing style has evolved and so have my expectations. I did not want to continue writing something I found to be mediocre (at best) material, so here I am with a new (and hopefully improved) edition. I hope that the changes I made are noticeable and appreciated! I'll leave a longer author's note on my profile for anyone interested._

To everyone: _Whilst I was writing my last fic, I put up with a lot of crap patiently and politely. Between the readers who harassed me to update sooner via numerous PMs, and the trolls who didn't even have the audacity to come off anon, I'm quite done with being polite. I know that even if this is a rewrite, my fic is extremely far from being the best one out there- However, if I get one more review that tells me that my fic is "utter shit" and "marysue garbage" without even having the decency to justify themselves or to tell me what I could do to improve- I will gladly tell them to go stick a cactus up their anus.  
_

_Happy reading (:_

* * *

**Ombre**

.

Taking someone's life to protect another's. The irony of it all.

Ninjas certainly weren't as noble as books made them out to be. In the end, they were all the same, no matter what they would like others to believe. If Ren had known how brutal, cold,and cruel one had to be in order to thrive and survive, she might not have become a ninja at all.

Unfortunately, she did not have any choice on the matter anymore. The victims she had killed, the choices she regretted- they would always plague the darkest corners of her mind and come to haunt the forefront when she had too much time on her hands. She supposed she would rather feel the gut twisting feeling of guilt, than feel nothing at all. It proved she still had some humanity left, that she had not yet let the consequences of her actions eat her up whole.

Staring at the gray rubble of a wasteland that was the only remainder of the village, Ren did her best to swallow whatever bubbling remorse she felt. Remorse was for when she was alone, during the brief minutes before she managed to fall asleep. Remorse had no home on a battle field.

Besides, she had no time to wallow up in nostalgia. It wasn't about her anymore. It wasn't about them. She knew that now. There would always be a bigger picture, and Ren had to focus on that instead.

But still.

"It had to be done."

As usual, she agreed with him.

* * *

Prologue

.

Konohagakure, better known as the Hidden Leaf Village, was built deep in the woods of the Land of Fire. Civilians who didn't know where to look would most probably never find it, as they would have to know their way around the mountains and the dense foliage.

Konoha was a large village surrounded by tall walls, always full of life, overlooked by the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. It was proud to hold the title of being the 'friendliest' of the five most powerful ninja villages, as this got them plenty of clientèle- who partly contributed to the village's wealth.

Everything in this village was running smoothly: business was doing surprisingly well and the only thing merchants had to worry about was dehydration; the kids of Konoha were out of school and enjoying the lazy, cloudless days of summer. The people of this village were slowly recovering from the repercussions of the Third Shinobi World War, smiling more and getting used to not living in constant fear.

Eleven days into July, Hana and Shin Tanaka awaited the birth of their second child, Ren.

This family could be considered by most as 'normal'. The father, Shin, worked in the Konoha Intelligence Force and had been recently promoted to Tokubetsu Jounin. The mother, a civilian, was a from one of Konoha's three families. Their eldest child, Tadashi, was six, and would be starting school at The Academy in September.

Hana and Shin, overjoyed by the birth of the newest addition to their growing family, didn't comment on the abnormal purple tufts of hair on their daughter's head nor the fact that their baby had odd pearly-grey eyes. That could be easily blamed on recessive genes.

Little did they know, their daughter had the soul of a twenty-two year old. Little did they know, this twenty-two year old was from an alternate universe, in which Konoha was a fictional village in a manga series. Little did they know that the twenty-two year old, now known as Ren, would retain knowledge of her past life and would use it to willingly change the fate of all: without realizing the consequences.

That, however, could not be blamed on recessive genes.

* * *

I. The Beginning

_And like a phoenix, from the ashes, she will rise again._

.

For a long time, Ren believed she was stuck in a dream. All she saw were vivid colors that blurred together at the edges and all she heard was cooing and laughter that soon became familiar music. All she knew was that she was surrounded by love and affection.

It took her several weeks before she realized that her dream felt frighteningly real, and maybe several more days to notice that the reason why everything was so big was because she seeing things in the perspective of a mere baby.

Ren took time to adjust to her new body, to say the least. She felt horribly constricted and hated the fact that she couldn't walk, or talk, or understand anything going on around her. She picked up on the fact that these strange people taking care of her were speaking a foreign language, and even though she couldn't understand what in the world they were saying, she perceived their emotions.

This lack of comprehension didn't really bother her at first, because they fed her when she was hungry, washed her when she was dirty, and constantly pampered her. She was living the sweet life and wasn't about to complain.

.

At four, Ren thought she knew her dream world as well as the lines on hands. Her dream was based off the manga series Naruto, which explained the weird hair colors and the strange things she sometimes witnessed; people vanishing into thin air, her mother twirling knives, her brother practicing weird hand signals (known as seals).

She didn't really know if this was normal for everyone, but she had a very easy time recognizing chakra signatures. It was hard to put into words, but everyone's chakra just felt different. She associated everyone's chakra with a picture so it would be easier to identify them if need be. Her brother, for instance, was a smooth white pebble whilst her mother was a bright red apple. She didn't know if the two things were connected, but she could sense people's emotions as well. It was easier trying to read someone she was familiar with, like her father, than someone stranger on the street.

This 'ability' she had was one of the reasons Ren didn't like large, crowded places like the market. Too many different chakras got a bit overwhelming at times, which caused Ren to seek out the peacefulness of quiet areas. Overall, though, Ren thought it was a neat trick. It made her the family champion at hide-and-seek, after all.

By now she could speak the basics of the common language, and understood vaguely how this society worked.

People like her father, ninjas, acted like the military force and protected the village. Her brother was training to become one as well, and Ren guessed she would probably follow in their footsteps, even if given the choice not to.

There were different ninja ranks- a hierarchy. Her mother had explained it to her countless of times and Ren was sure she knew how the organizational system functioned. If the village was a circus, the Hokage would be the ringleader, the jounins would be the guys that stuck their heads in the lion's mouth, the chuunins the tightrope walkers, and the genin the jugglers. Or something of the sort.

Ren didn't really worry about politics. She was now a toddler, and wanted to live it to the fullest! She forced her mother to take her to every park, store, and public building. She really liked exploring the village and when she had seen most of it, decided what places she liked and didn't like. She stayed away from parks because those were boring and filled with kids that were physically her age but had the mental capacity of a primitive monkey. She liked the Konoha Public Library and the Dango Shop best, and visited these places several times a week.

She probably visited the Konoha Public Library most often, as it had an extensive collection of books and annotated scrolls that held answers to various questions she harbored. She couldn't read very well but sometimes begged her mother to borrow books, preferably with a lot of pictures, about chakra and battle strategies. She really liked the battle strategies books.

Her parents knew that children were curious and creative creatures, but were still left scratching their heads when they found Ren flipping through medical encyclopedias and clumsily drawing what seemed to be the chakra circulatory system. Her strange behavior wouldn't have been as shocking if they had known what was exactly going on in her head.

* * *

"You're kidding me," exclaimed Tadashi, flabbergasted. "_You're_ the one who stole my kunai?"

Ren looked up at him, mustering the best innocent look she could. His eyebrows had disappeared behind his bandana and his tone was almost bordering in amazement.

"I just found them lying around," she shrugged, trying to act nonchalant even though she was pretty proud of herself.

"You didn't_ use_ them did you?" he said, eying her suspiciously. He remembered the last time she had decided to play with sharp objects ... and frankly it wasn't an experience he wanted to witness again.

Despite her delicately formed face and wide eyes, Tadashi knew his sister well and wasn't fooled by her tricks- or her innocent appearance.

"Why would I? Mom said I wasn't allowed to." The rising corners of her mouth betrayed her and Tadashi shook his head, raising his eyes up to the sky silently wondering what the hell Ren had been doing with his relatively new kunai set. Scratch that- he didn't want to know.

Mom worried that Ren would hurt herself if she used real kunai and shuriken, because of that one accident that had happened when she was three. Two years had passed however, and Ren had been patiently observing Tadashi from the sidelines in the backyard to know the basics of 'how to correctly throw a kunai'. She had carefully taken note of the correct foot placements and wrist movements. Observation was important, but then came understanding and practicing.

All she had wanted to do was see if she could also aim a kunai properly. Every ninja she knew could properly aim a kunai in their sleep, and seeing as she was to become one as well, she didn't see the point of waiting two or three more years until they taught her at school.

Stealing Tadashi's set of kunai hadn't been that hard. He had a bad habit, along with her mother, to leave things laying about. The tricky part had been to smuggle the weapons out of the house and to bring them to a small clearing behind trees by the lake without anyone noticing.

The real kunai had been heavier than she had expected them to be, and she had missed her target by a foot the first time she had given it a shot, which had been extremely frustrating. She stayed an hour longer than she had originally planned, and Tadashi had ended up noticing her absence from the house.

"Did you kill anyone?"

"Nope!"

"Shame... It would have been nice if you had gotten an Uchiha." Tadashi sighed in defeat, earning a giggle from his sister. She had never understood why her brother hated that particular clan so much, but she found his bitterness entertaining. "Better luck next time! Come on, let's get you cleaned up, you got some dirt on your skirt."

"Okay."

"What were you doing with these, anyway?"

"Nothing."

Tadashi shot her a knowing look, before leaning over and patting the top of her head.

_What a sneaky one, she was_, he thought; feeling proud that his mischievous personality had finally rubbed off on her.

* * *

"I can't believe we're late! Why did I even wait for you?!" Ren panted, taking a moment to fix her hair that had fallen from her bun from when she was running.

"Relax Ren-Ren, I'll bring you to your classroom..." Tadashi looked at the list of students pinned up on the bulletin board, looking for each of their names, his right hand wiping away some of the sweat that had formed on his brow.

"Yeah, please do. My sensei will take one look at you and understand why I was late," huffed Ren, cheeks still rosy.

"Ah! You have Daikoku-sensei! He sneezes when you tickle him and his face gets really red when you get him angry enough."

"... Why did you _tickle_ him?" Ren's eyebrows were drawn slightly together as she followed her brother down the long hallway.

"Ask me another day, okay? The story's rather long and unfortunately for you, we're running a bit late... Well, here we are." Tadashi cleared his throat and adjusted his bandana before bursting into the classroom, wearing his trademark grin. If he could have thrown confetti and played some music, Ren was sure he would have. Tadashi had always had a flair for the dramatic.

"Daikoku-sensei! Long time no see! I'd give you a hug, but I was in a bit of a rush this morning and I didn't shower."

Ren was suddenly regretting her choice of letting her brother accompany her, since it was hard to miss the collective disgust and surprise the class was aiming in her direction. Unlike her brother, she didn't like being in the spotlight for whatever reason.

"Oh.. Hello Tadashi. As much as I appreciate your enthusiasm this early in the morning, you're not in my class this year."

Daikoku-sensei looked like he was in his thirties and as Ren gave him a quick look-over, she couldn't find anything remarkable about his features. Nothing about him made you stop for a second glance and for that Ren envied him. A face that could easily blend in the crowd and not be remembered was ideal for a ninja.

"And it pains you as well, I'm sure. I actually just came by to drop off my baby sister, Ren. She's very sneaky this one; steals my-"

Ren pulled him backwards, interrupting him, before pushing him out the door.

"You're embarrassing me," she whispered at him."And you forgot your lunch at home."

"Oh crap! I knew I had-"

She closed the door in his face, before turning around and laughing nervously.

"Please excuse us."

"Don't worry about it," said Daikoku Funeno, looking at the girl in front of him with a creased brow.

Handling 24 kids each year was hard enough, but adding a Tanaka kid in the mix guaranteed a horrible headache, back pains, and the constant paranoia of being pranked. If his sister was anything like her brother, Daikoku would be forced to ask for a raise. Besides, he already had enough to look forward to with the Uzumaki kid. He didn't want to die of heart failure.

"We were just going to start introductions. Why don't you start? Tell us a bit about yourself."

"Oh, uh, all right." Ren turned to face 23 pair of unfamiliar eyes and smiled tentatively at them, earning no response. "I'm Ren Tanaka. I like reading and cooking and want to become one of the smartest ninjas ever!"

"Ren Tanaka? All right, why don't you go take a seat. Hm... Go sit next to Uchiha. Sasuke, raise your hand."

_Just my luck,_ she thought, doing her best not to freak out as she went up the rows of desks, to where _Sasuke Uchiha_ had raised his hand reluctantly. Ignoring the glares from numerous girls around her, she went to sit down next to him.

Well. She hadn't expected her first day at school to start off this way, that was for sure.

* * *

"How's school?"

Ren looked up from the drawing she was working on, letting out a small huff.

"It's _boring_! I hate school."

School had been a bit of a disappointment for Ren. She had expected a great place, there to make her smarter and stronger and faster. Instead, it was full of loud idiots arguing over stolen crayons and boys. Even the material they taught wasn't interesting. Ren didn't want to waste a year learning about the founding fathers of Konoha or about the shinobi rules. She wanted to become a shinobi- go on missions, learn jutsus, all that stuff. They hadn't even started to learn about chakra! Not to mention the fact that they wouldn't even be using real shuriken and kunai until _next_ year.

"You hate school?"

"We can't even use real weapons yet! We have to practice with cardboard and wooden ones."

Hana Tanaka sighed, looking down at her daughter questionably.

Maybe they should have enrolled her at The Academy sooner. She had just wanted to make sure that Ren had had enough time to actually be a kid, because she remembered the time of war- when children grew up too fast and the light in their eyes was extinguished. She didn't want that for her children. She wanted them to be happy, carefree, and run around with other kids their age... except that Ren had never been like the other children. She refused to play and even talk with the other kids, preferring to read books much too complicated for someone her age to even understand. Hana knew that it was normal for Ren to be interested in the ninja world- all children were more or less- but Ren seemed to act more mature than Tadashi, who was six years her senior. Shin called her gifted, but that explanation did nothing to cease her worrying. Gifted children were, after all, sought after and used. She had seen her friends made into soldiers before they even had time to live and the end result had always been the same. Sure, the war had ended... but it didn't change the fact that 'geniuses' were exploited.

Hana shook her head, clearing her thoughts by focusing on the sketch Ren was in the middle of finishing. A tulip.

"Have you made any friends yet?"

Ren paused, pursing her chapped lips and frowning a bit.

"No, not really. I don't like any of them."

"Surely, there's someone you might like. Have you tried talking to them?"

"No."

"Then there you go. Try talking to each of them, at least once? Maybe they won't be as bad as you think."

"Doubt it."

"Ren."

"Okay! Fine I'll talk to them."

* * *

Ren found this whole thing to be ridiculous. She didn't want to talk to any of them. They were all stupid. And loud. And some of them were just plain mean.

Her mother had really seemed to want her to make friends though, so here she was, going to try to find someone interesting enough to help her train... or something of the sort.

She understood it would look suspicious if she didn't even make the effort to make friends. She had been doing her best to blend in with the crowd but felt like she stood out more than Naruto's trademark orange jumpsuit or Rock Lee's strange green jumpsuit. She knew her family found her a bit strange and it was only a matter of time before others thought so as well. They would think she was a freak and try to have her checked... and then... and then maybe even look around her brain a little. Ren shuddered at the thought... If they uncovered her big secret they would... Well frankly, she didn't really want it to come to that.

Her memories of the real world were precious pieces of information. Information that people would kill to have, she was sure. So it was her job to keep those thoughts locked away, safe from others.

She had to make friends. Or at least make pretend-friends.

Ren was good at pretending. She was, after all, pretending to be a mere child; even if she did appear to be smarter than the others. So pretending to be friends with someone couldn't be that hard, right? But if Ren was going to have a pretend friend, she wanted a good one.

Sasuke would have been a good candidate, because not only would have befriending an Uchiha mean annoying her brother, but he would have made a good sparring partner. The only thing was... befriending Sasuke would not only require too much effort, it would also unleash the fury of her female classmates on her. Trying to be the Uchiha's friend was just asking for trouble.

She was intrigued by the Hyuugas too. They were known for their special taijutsu style, but she hadn't seen any scrolls or passages in books about it, which made sense because Hyuugas weren't likely to share their secrets and traditions with anyone- unless that meant killing them off afterwards.

The only Hyuuga in her year was the fragile Hinata girl, who stayed quiet and followed other, louder girls around. She doubted that Hinata would be able to teach her anything useful at this point. During sparring lessons, the girl often lost.

Ren thought it was very selfish of her- picking her 'friends' out like that. But she was just following the saying 'choose your friends wisely'. Besides, if everything followed the original plot, there would be a huge war coming and Ren wasn't sure if she was willing to sacrifice the time before that happened to play tag or make flower arrangements. She couldn't afford to play around when she knew something this big was coming. That would be selfish of her. She had to be strong and protect others. That's why she was stuck in this dream, wasn't it? To change things and make them better?

But who else could she befriend? No one was as strong or fast or smart as she wanted them to-

She paused, her eyes settling on the figure to the right of her.

Shikamaru rubbed the back of his head, straightening up and expecting to see Daikoku-sensei reprimand him again for falling asleep. Instead, blinking lazily, his eyes sight adjusted and focused on the purple-haired girl in front of him. He frowned, on the defensive. He didn't appreciate it when people woke him up from his nap and much less when they poked him in the head. Hard.

"Hi."

_What did she want_? _Stupid, troublesome girls_. His eye twitched and he wished she would just take the hint and leave him so he could go back to sleep.

"I'm Ren."

...

"I want you to be my friend."

...

_Damn it, why wasn't he responding normally_, she thought. She felt a wave of negative emotion roll off of him but she had a hard time distinguishing the different feelings he was emitting. Annoyance? Confusion?

"Look, we need to be friends."

He continued to stare at her, looking like a deer in headlights. She didn't understand why though. She had been very clear of her intentions so there wasn't much to comprehend. Children usually liked the straight-to-the-point-speeches, but he seemed a bit brain dead. Maybe she should have been more subtle, but growing up with Tadashi as her brother hadn't made her any the more understated. Maybe she should work on that. Note taken.

A part of her knew she was being childish and that this wasn't the proper way to make friends, but that's who she was now- a child. She had learned to accept and embrace this, even if it frustrated her more times than not.

She had almost given up to go and find another potential new friend (less lazy, more reactive) but she ceased those thoughts when she heard him sigh in defeat.

"I'm Shikamaru."

He knew it was probably best to just go with the flow. Resisting the current always took more energy and sometimes was a futile anyway. His mom was the perfect example that women should not be objected, _especially_ when they were determined.

He didn't know much about this Ren girl, apart that she had a psycho brother who was _almost_ worse than Naruto.

There was something calming about her eyes. Maybe it was their color. Reminded him of clouds in the early morning and late afternoons. He hoped she liked clouds and wasn't like the other hyperactive students.

"Great! You're going to be a great friend!" She beamed at him, happy of her day's accomplishment.

She heard him sigh one more time, before sealing their new friendship with a tentative smile.

* * *

She frowned in concentration, trying to figure out exactly what he was up to. She had lost four times in a row today and was getting more and more frustrated. She knew the key was to stay calm because if not, she wouldn't be able to think properly. It was unnerving though, having an opponent that seemed to anticipate your every move.

Ren was glad she had chosen someone so smart to be her friend.

"How is it you win all the time?"

Shikamaru sighed, rubbing his forehead with his fingers.

"Your strategy is too obvious."

"Excuse me?" Ren was offended.

"You play the way you're expected to. Makes it predictable. Although they're good strategies, they've all been used before."

"Oh." Ren frowned again, trying to process what he had just said. It was true that she had been reading those "How to play shogi" books, and had picked up a couple things from there. "Well what strategy do you use then?"

She watched him shake his head before raising an eyebrow at her. "Why would I tell you? You don't reveal your strategy to your opponent."

"I don't think that you'll loose anything by telling me," huffed Ren, pulling her hair back up in a bun. "You would still beat me."

She didn't know if this is what six year olds usually did for fun, but she ended up enjoying the time she spent with Shikamaru during the first few weeks of school. During recess and lunch breaks they always found a quiet place under the trees , where she would end up talking most of the time. During weekends, they sometimes met up by her spot next to the lake . Sometimes they played shogi, which she found very challenging as well as humbling, because he always beat her -even if it did take up to two hours.

The first few times they had hung out together, she wondered if he even listened to what she had to say. He always seemed to doze off or block her out and Ren felt like she was talking to a sleeping deer most of the time. She assumed that having a sleeping smart friend was better than having a loud, obnoxious, stupid one- so she didn't once complain.

Girls in her class found it weird that she spent so much time with a boy that wasn't as talented or good looking as Sasuke or Hasuo Yomohiro. It was apparently required to fawn over those two to be considered 'normal', which Ren found quite disturbing. Six year old girls weren't supposed to be that interested in boys, were they? Yet here they were, following the poor boys around, making them sandwiches and love notes.

One particularly annoying girl, named Ami, also had purple hair, and made it her life long mission to make sure everyone knew that she was the better than Ren. Although Ren never spoke to Ami, she heard Ami whisper some nasty things to her group of friends when she passed them.

Apart from that gang of girls, Ren didn't have a problem with her other classmates. She had tried to make casual conversation with them during meals and in between classes, but things just got awkward. What interested her seemed boring for others, and vice-versa. She didn't find the jokes they laughed at amusing, just like they didn't understand her dry humor. There was no common ground.

Still- even if she didn't talk to her other classmates, she couldn't help but observe the characters that appeared in the manga, like Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. She couldn't help but wonder if they would grow up the way she remembered they did. Maybe she should try and guide them in the right direction? Ren shook her head, dismissing the idea as quickly as it had come. Trying to change the plot from this early on would most probably have drastic consequences later on, and she needed that knowledge to help her survive. Besides, she didn't want to change anything. Trying to change things for the better could end up backfiring and just making everything worse. Besides, she couldn't change the big events even if she desired to more than anything. Realistically, a 6 year old girl who knew no jutsu could not prevent the Uchiha massacre from happening. At least not without incredible luck, which was something only heroes possessed- and Ren knew she was anything but a hero.

Now that she thought of it, Ren didn't interact with anyone but Shikamaru, and occasionally Shikamaru's friend Chouji Akimichi. She didn't really know how Shikamaru had become friends with Chouji, but now those two were inseparable. Chouji followed them around everywhere, but Ren didn't mind that much anymore. He was quiet as well, and was even a bit adorable at times. Ren never felt any negative emotions coming from him, which brought a sense of peace.

Today the students were learning the twelve basic hand seals, and Ren was thinking of joining Shikamaru in his afternoon nap.

This had been one of the first things her brother had taught her, so she didn't feel the excitement the other students were feeling. She briefly wondered if anyone was as bored as she was. Surely the kids coming from the big clans had already learned this stuff.

She was right. The Aburame boy, although going at a slow pace, did not once fumble through the motions. Ino Yamanaka didn't seem to have that much trouble either. Sasuke, the show-off he was, was concentrating on performing the hand seals at the fastest pace he could- earning admiring glances and sighs from girls in his proximity. This seemed to ignite something inside Naruto, who tried doing the same. His clumsy attempts were laughed at by Unagi, who was sitting next to him.

Personally, Ren didn't understand why Unagi was laughing. The only seals he had managed to master were the really easy ones, that didn't require any finger crossing. She didn't expect him to be anywhere near Sasuke's level anytime soon. But that was to be expected, wasn't it? Kids that didn't come from ninja families usually had a harder time learning the material taught at school. It was a fact.

There were, of course, exceptions. Hasuo was a prime example. He was good at taijutsu from what she had seen so far, and had beat Shino in their sparring match last week.

Sparring had been exciting, even for her. She had never gone against anyone apart from her occasional lessons from her brother and she had looked forward to spar someone her own size for once.

They were all taught the traditional shinobi sparring method and some of the standard Konoha offensive and defensive stances. After practicing for only two months, Ren was a little surprised to notice that the students had actually progressed. The change was subtle but still noticeable: they were more confident in their footing, even if their hits and dodges remained sloppy.

Ren, who had watched her brother train since she was a baby, knew that they all had a lot of work to do before they got to his level- and Tadashi wasn't even a genin yet! She couldn't even begin to imagine what she would have to do to get to her father's level. The thought was as motivating as it was depressing.

She blamed her slow progress on the body she had. It hadn't lost its baby fat yet, which hindered her speed. Her limbs were too short so she had a harder time landing a punch and a kick. Her fingers were pudgy, which had been the source of many problems in her past. Overall, she really disliked her body. She didn't want to be small and feeble. She didn't want her stupid purple hair. She never admitted her dissatisfaction out loud, because what good would that do? Instead, she trained harder, working on flexibility and endurance, since strength wasn't exactly one of her fortes.

At the end of the day, however, she wasn't satisfied. She wanted to be better. She wanted her hard work to show.

What she needed was a sort of personal trainer, someone far more experienced than Tadashi to guide her. Unfortunately for her, her father (the only experienced ninja she knew) was way too busy to help her out during the weekends.

"Why don't I try to ask around for you?" he suggested instead.

Ren had agreed eagerly, not quite knowing what she had just signed up for.


	2. II

_It never snows in Konoha. It rains a lot, though. The rain tastes funny on your tongue. Sweet, almost._

.

* * *

.

Six years were a long time to think.

This was Ren's sixth year stuck in this dream world of hers. So, naturally, she had ended up drawing several conclusions.

The first one was that she had been blessed so far with the luck of a hero. She had, after all, been born into a nice, financially stable, family in Konoha. Konoha, the village with the 'friendliest' reputation.

What if she had been born in Kiri? The rumors concerning Kiri ninjas were more than a little frightening. Sure, Kiba had a way of exaggerating facts, but even her dad said that Kiri nin were not to be messed with. What if she had appeared in this world during a time of war? With no training or understanding of things around her, she would have died on the spot.

Also, the fact that she had appeared in this world as a baby had been quite advantageous. How would she have explained that she could not speak a word of Japanese, or whatever language they were speaking? So far, she had been lucky to the point that she now expected things at any moment to turn awry.

The second conclusion was that any past knowledge of the storyline she retained was slowly fading. She had a harder time remembering future events and details that were surely going to be important elements to the story. Every time she thought she remembered something minor, the thought escaped her. Reluctantly, she had been obliged to write it all down, in fear she would forget everything all together.

Having a written trace of this sort of information wasn't safe, she knew that, but she had little choice on the matter. In the end, she decided to write it all down in English because to her knowledge, no one around here spoke or understood English and she knew codes were incredibly hard- most times impossible- to crack when you didn't have a key. And even if the person who did stumble across her notebook managed to understand English, they would also have to be able to comprehend her scribbled hand writing and all the abbreviations she had made.

She kept this notebook neatly stacked on her bookshelf, for all hidden things were harder to find when left in plain sight. Well, most of the time.

Besides, the notebook itself wouldn't be regarded as suspicious, for she always carried one with her. Indeed, Ren was well on her way to filling up the pages of a seventh one with sketches of flowers, buildings, and passing people; jotting down general observations, specific annotations, and ends of overheard conversations. Some would say what she did was all pointless, but to her it wasn't. It occupied her as well as kept her aware of her surroundings. A keen eye was something important to possess, and Ren was sure it would one day be an advantage.

"Himo and Ren, you can join our team," decided Unagi, snapping Ren out of her musings.

It was lunch time and some of the students had decided to play Ninja- a game that involved _cardboard _shuriken and kunai, wire string, and cheap smoke bombs. Divided into two teams, you then had the choice: go hunting or go into hiding. To phrase it simply: the team that managed to 'kill' every member of the other team first, won.

Ren usually went on the offensive, because she found the others fairly quickly by localizing their individual 'chakra print'. Everyone's chakra had a different feel, and so it was easily distinguishable in the mass of the vegetation's chakra. It was probably also due to the fact the kids in their in her class never bothered to try to mask their chakra (she doubted they even knew how because even she didn't), but she was fairly certain that she would find them anyway, regardless of their chakra. Hide-and-seek had always been her favorite game.

Managing to hit them with a _cardboard _weapon was trickier business. Ren had to be wary of the occasional gust of wind that messed up the weapon's trajectory, as well as remember that you needed more strength to throw them since _cardboard _traveled the air at a slower speed than normal weapons.

Today, Ren had successfully convinced Shikamaru and Chouji to play. She knew Shikamaru would choose to play defensive, as he was rather good at it, but she didn't really know what Chouji would do. He had never played these kind of games with her before, always choosing to sit by the side, or go off with Shikamaru somewhere. But those two were inseparable now, and if she wanted Shikamaru to play, Chouji would have to play along too.

"Nagato can come with us then," called Kora, waving him over.

Good riddance, Ren thought. Nagato's greatest ambition was to become an Academy instructor. He pretended he was one most of the time, always telling Ren her stance was incorrect and it needed to be 'like this instead', or that her hand seals were sloppy and needed more work. He tried imitating Daikoku-sensei's mannerisms and voice, failing ridiculously. Whenever he was around, Ren had to control the growing itch to tape his mouth shut for all eternity.

"Okay let's start!" Kora yelled, clapping his hands once, signaling the start of the game.

"But what about Chouji?" Shikamaru crossed his arms, looking at Kora with furrowed eyebrows and a look of annoyance that he usually used when he'd not had enough sleep.

Chouji hadn't been picked by either team, which Ren had failed to notice. She honestly thought he had already been picked by Kora, but now she realized that hadn't been the case.

"Well, we can take him in our team Unagi," she shrugged whilst trying to understand what exactly was going on.

Why was Kora looking so annoyed? Did Kora not like Chouji? She knew that the boy disliked many people, Naruto and Kiba being his number one victims, but she had never heard Kora actually _argue _with Chouji. In fact, he rarely talked with him at all! Why would there be any problem?

"You mean _my _team," Unagi corrected, frowning slightly. "We already have six people on our team. If we take him then the teams will be uneven. Plus, I've already chosen who I want, and I don't want him."

"But if no one takes him, the teams will still be uneven!" Ren protested, her own frown deepening.

"I don't want him on my team," piped up Kora. "He'll just be_ extra weight _we don't need."

"It's all right," said Chouji in a small voice, his ears burning pink. "I don't think I want to play anyway."

Ren was starting to feel horribly guilty, because after all, she was the one who had dragged the two to play. She hadn't planned on him being excluded or humiliated. Chouji was really nice, she couldn't comprehend why the others were being mean. Sure, he wasn't very fast, but he packed a strong punch when provoked, and Ren was sure he would be good at hiding.

"If Chouji isn't playing, then I'm not either," Shikamaru said firmly, his jaw clenched tightly, before turning on his heels and walking away, dragging his friend along with him.

Ren looked back and forth between her friends and her playmates, her eyes wide. She knew instinctively that Shikamaru would head over to one of her favorite places in all Konoha, the tree she had claimed as hers by the pond.

"Pff, as if we needed Lazy Ass and Fatso on our team," sneered Kora, watching the two walk away. "Let's start then?"

"Er, bad sushi!" Ren groaned, holding her stomach as if in pain. "Bad sushi!"

"Yeah right," snorted Kora. "You're just going to go after those dead weights."

Ren turned on him, narrowing her eyes and clenching her fists around the collar of his shirt. "They're _not _dead weights."

Kora was about to say something mean again, she could tell, but before he had a chance, Ren spilled some of the itching powder she had stolen from her brother inside his shirt. She had been planning on using it on Tadashi after an unfortunate event this morning that involved cold water and a toad, but after this turn of events, she decided it had better uses.

Kora didn't even have the time to react, for Ren had long since run after Shikamaru and Chouji, vowing to never choose anything or anyone over them again.

Thus the formidable trio begun.

Ren started to spend every lunch break with Chouji and Shikamaru, sometimes bringing an extra bag of chips with her just because she knew he loved them. In return, he sometimes gave her his family's special calorie bars that were by far tastier and more energizing than the cheap ones you could buy at the supermarket. Ren quickly grew to care for Chouji, protecting him from nasty comments and helping him with his studying.

With Shikamaru, things were different. She suggested instead of demanded, finding him much more complacent and willing when gently nudged as opposed to violently pulled. They shared similar thought processes, which caused them to occasionally finish each other's sentences, much to Chouji's great amusement.

The three of them spent a lot of their time after school. Sometimes they would go to Ren's house and bake cookies, or train in Shikamaru's backyard during weekends. Saturdays they would explore places of the village they had never seen, Wednesdays they would go to the ice cream parlor and profit from the 'buy one scoop and get another free' weekly discount.

Ren's parents liked Shikamaru and Chouji a lot, but Ren had a sneaking suspicion that they would have liked any friends she would have made just as much. They were probably just relieved she hadn't stayed a solitary freak forever, she thought. In the end though, her mother was right. It was nice to have friends, to enjoy the company of people you liked. As much as Ren liked books, they would never be as kind and generous as Chouji, or intelligent and patient as Shikamaru.

"Just as long as you don't bring one of the red eyes over, I'm fine with it," shrugged Tadashi, after having thrown all his kunai into one of their swinging wooden targets.

"Your third kunai's off-center," said their mother, not even looking up from her magazine.

Ren was looking over her mother's shoulder, trying to understand how the model in the picture felt comfortable wearing the beaded shirt. Personally, Ren preferred wearing comfortable clothes, but she knew some ninjas were more extravagant in their taste in clothing.

"Tch, only by a centimeter! Give me a break," he rolled his eyes, collecting his weapons.

"_T__wo _centimeters. Precision is very-"

"Important. It's what makes a difference during battle. Yes, yes, I know. I shall have you know that I have the best aim in my class."

"Too bad that doesn't make up for your low grades in teamwork, practicality, maths, and history," she chided, trying to hide a smile.

It wasn't that Tadashi was a bad student. He just chose not to study. At least, that's what he claimed. It was probably a true statement, because Ren never saw him open his textbooks or practice during weekdays. Instead, he was always off with Hatsu playing a joke on another unfortunate civilian.

"Bah, it's my birthday tomorrow! Go easy on me," he grumbled.

Nevertheless, he concentrated more this time.

The next day, everyone was busy with his birthday preparations. Chouji had stopped by to bring the cake early in the morning, and had stayed to help with the decorations.

Bright, colorful banners hung from the walls and small lights bordered the windows. Ren's mother had taken care of the rest of the food, cooking large platters of Tadashi's favorite, while her father had cleaned the garden with a few neat jutsus and superhuman speed and strength all the ninjas seemed to posses.

"Happy Birthday Tadashiiiiiiii, Happy Birthday to youuuuuuu!"

Tadashi blew out the thirteen candles easily, taking one out of the cake to lick the icing on it.

"What did you wish for?" Ren looked up at her brother curiously.

What could he possibly want? A new kunai set? Grandpa had taken care of that. A new bandana? Ren had it covered. Good grades? Lots of money? Good fortune?

"I'm not allowed to say," he grinned down at her. "But it has to do with a person of your species."

"Huh? You wished for a girl to like you back, didn't you? _That's _what you wished for?" Her voice had raised several octaves, and she looked at him as if he had grown a third eye.

"You'll understand me someday, you'll see," he laughed, patting her head affectionately.

Ren highly doubted it. Why would she find any guys she knew attractive? They were _children_. Her mind was still very much adult, and even for a nanosecond, she couldn't imagine herself with a six-year-old. Ew.

"Come Tadashi! You have to open my present first!" Insisted Natsu, one of Tadashi's closest friends, tugging his arm and leading him to the small pile of gifts at the end of the long table.

Ren watched her brother, quietly wondering if she would find love in the future. Did she even want to get married and have children later on? Back in the real world, that was sort of the inevitable end of things. Grow up, get a job, find a husband, and have a big white wedding, hoping for one or two kids and no divorce. Here, things were different.

It wasn't abnormal for a ninja to stay single until they lived their last day. In fact, it was almost better to live the lonely life, because death could come claim her at any instant. Besides, who would want to marry her? No civilian would want her. Sure, they would admire her strength, courage, and loyalty towards her village, but they wanted a wife that would stay home and take care of the kids and cook their dinner, not one that knew how to kill you with flowers.

* * *

The heavy rain fall announced the start of spring; and with that, the start of a new lesson.

"Today we'll be learning how to properly use a bow," announced Daikoku-sensei, after leading the class outside to one of the school's training fields.

This one was usually occupied by older Academy students, nicknamed Browns by other students for a reason unknown to Ren, but Daikoku-sensei had reserved the field for their use today so it was empty. Ren could tell that the older students learned more difficult and interesting things, because the grass was almost nonexistent, as it had been run, stomped on, and even burnt in some places.

Several small brown bows and quivers lay at Daikoku-sensei's feet, and the class huddled around them with various looks of curiosity. Ren was pleased they would finally be learning something new, because she was getting tired of going through the same taijutsu katas over and over again. She understood that they practiced the same things repeatedly so that their movements would become automatically quick and fluid reflexes, but after a while it got boring.

"The tips of the arrows are blunt," their sensei warned, no trace of humor in his eyes. "But can still do serious damage if fired at a student. That's why it'll be important not to fool around during this lesson. I need everyone to do _exactly _what I tell them to do. If I catch any one of you goofing off, you will be dismissed. The safety of others is what's most important."

They all nodded, and it was obvious that his words caused either nervousness or excitement. This time they would be using an actual weapon, not some cardboard or wooden variant. They had never done anything close to dangerous so far, although sparring with a strong classmate could occasionally result in minor bruising or a broken nose. Ren hadn't ever been taught how to wield a bow and arrow, even if she had seen her brother's friend use one once. She silently wondered if she would be any good at it.

"Pull the string back with three fingers like this," he demonstrated. "You'll pull back the string with your dominant hand. Position your feet this way if you're right-handed or this way if you're left-handed. Good. Now don't release your arrow. Just practice drawing the arrow back until you get used to the feeling. No Hinata, position your hand here, not there. Excellent."

And he continued watching over them carefully, with a sharp eye and gentle, yet firm words. After a good fifteen minutes, Daikoku-sensei finally let them try aiming at the hay targets. Ren thought the targets were positioned too close. She was, after all, used to aiming from a farther distance when she practiced with her shuriken and kunai.

Sensei had them shoot one by one, with the other students standing a good way behind the shooter as a safety precaution. It was a good thing too, because Naruto managed to shoot an arrow perpendicular to the ground, making it land a little less than a foot near Daikoku-sensei's sturdy boots.

Ren wasn't very good at it, even when she tried her best. It required a straight back and crisp arm muscles, which didn't suit her at all.

Daikoku-sensei had his class working on archery twice every week for the rest of the year, moving the targets further and further back once the students started to get the hang of it. Every single time after their archery lessons, Ren's arms ached and she was glad when Shikamaru gave her a soothing balm his family made from medicinal plants.

Spring also marked the start of after school kunoichi lessons. It was taught by Suzume**, **who was nice enough, but rather odd. She had dark curls, dressed only in pink, and was known for being the biggest germaphobe in the universe. She carried hand sanitizer around with her everywhere and cleaned her glasses every few minutes until they shined again.

Almost every girl had signed up for Suzume's lessons, which had surprised Ren. She had thought that they would prefer gossiping and playing with dolls than learning how to infiltrate and manipulate. As much as she was glad her classmates were learning more, a tiny selfish part of her wasn't, for that meant that she wouldn't learn more than them. Ren, despite wishing she felt differently, liked knowing that she was smarter or better at things than others, even if she didn't show it. It was comforting, in a way.

Ren rarely displayed what she knew how to do in front of others at school. She took a leaf out of Shika's book, staying content with doing just the bare minimum. If she had done her best, she would have pushed the likes of Sasuke to try to surpass her, at weapon throwing for example. By being average, Sasuke didn't feel the pressing need to train harder. And by being average, Ren was more observant to what was going on around her, evaluating what she needed to work on and who was likely to be a difficult opponent to defeat.

It didn't take her long to realize, that apart from written subjects and kunai throwing, she really needed to train harder, especially in taijutsu. Hasuo had exceptional strength that not even Sasuke could rival, Naruto had superhuman stamina, and Shino was crazy precise in his taijutsu katas. These kunoichi lessons proved that there were even more things she needed to work on.

The first few lessons consisted of learning all about flowers. They worked with the kind that were commonly found in Konoha, like daisies and poppies, but then were taught about the flowers that grew specifically on mountains, next to the sea, and extreme dry climates. Ren had some knowledge on the ones that grew in the village, but she quickly learned that Ino could probably win a flower trivia game hands down. She knew everything about their uses, when they bloomed and how often they needed to be watered.

After learning about the flowers in general, the girls were taught about the poisonous ones. Inhaling some of them, like the _Atropa belladonna, _which could cause headaches and hallucinations. A few of them were actually quite deadly, and Suzume taught the girls how to extract the poison found in the petals or in the stems, and how to serve it an unsuspecting customer's morning coffee.

* * *

"Come on, now!" Beckoned Daikoku-sensei, leading his class into the forest.

They were embarking on an overnight camping fest with the Browns. It was supposed to be symbolic as well as educational: passing the flame of knowledge to the younger ones. Or something along those lines.

Everyone had been assigned an older student. The pair that showed the most teamwork and proficiency would win a free dinner to Yakiniku Q. It was all the motivation Chouji needed.

Ren was paired with Rima, a pretty girl who wore her curly hair in pigtails.

"Hi Ren!" She smiled, showcasing a row of perfectly aligned white teeth. "I know your brother!"

"Oh. How nice."

"Yep. He once planted an entire jar of garden slugs in by backpack. It'll be an experience he'll never forget."

"Hm?"

"You see, Ren, there's a reason they call me Uppercut," she explained while unpacking their tent. "So no funny business. I take winning very seriously. Have you been camping before?"

"They taught us how to pitch a tent last week and how to hunt forest animals. Daikoku-sensei showed us how to skin them, but we haven't had the chance yet. Oh, and this week we learned how to identify poisonous berries. But, er, no. We've never been camping before."

"I guess that's a good start. You guys will practice camping loads of times before you graduate. Once you become a Brown, they'll have you go on survival camping. Which means one entire week in the forest with no help."

"Sounds like fun," Ren said dryly.

"Oh, it's not. People start to stink very quickly, and unless you were born without a sense of smell, you'll have the pleasure of ... well anyway. You end up getting used to it. The dirt, the smell, the skinning..."

They pitched their tent silently, each lost in their own thoughts.

"Eh Rima... What d'you wanna do after you graduate?"

"Well, I'm going to become a genin, then a chuunin. I don't really know what I'll become after that. I guess I'll go on lots of missions and when I start getting old I'll be an Academy teacher. What about you? Plan on becoming part of ANBU? The first female Hokage, maybe?"

"I haven't really thought about it," she shrugged.

What _would_she do after graduation? Sure, she wanted to stay with Shika and Chou, but that wasn't exactly a long-term goal. It wasn't an ambition.

"Don't worry, you'll have time to think it through. You'll go to counseling during your last year at the Academy, and if you fail your genin test the first time, you'll be reoriented."

"Reoriented?"

"Yep. A lot of the students here are civilians, you know. They won't become ninjas. But they'll have learned the basics, and will know how to protect themselves if the need should arise."

"What do you mean? They won't become ninjas? Can't they retake the genin test?"

"They can. Most won't. Becoming a ninja isn't just hard work. It's in your genes. If you're not born without enough chakra..." she trailed off, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "Of course, there's always the odd case... But I look at things realistically. If you're from one of Konoha's clans, you're almost guaranteed a free pass. Some might call it unfair. I don't. Kids from clans usually train harder, because of tradition or their parents. It's only natural that they pass, isn't it?"

"Hm."

"We should start gathering dry wood. I'll get Nao to light the fire. He's started to learn elemental jutsus. Not very good at them, but he can light a fire. Well, most of the time. "

Crouching down to collect branches and twigs, Ren took the opportunity to see how the others were faring. Shikamaru was setting an animal trap with his Brown, Chouji was picking bush berries with his, Unagi had gotten tangled in rope, and Sakura was busy learning how to set a security perimeter with bells and wires.

Later on, Rima showed Ren how to take an arrow out of a rabbit without tearing too much of the animal's muscle, so that there would still be enough meat left to eat. Then she demonstrated how to cook a tasty rabbit stew with specific berries, leaves, and roots.

"Obviously, you won't be able to cook stew all the time. Berries don't grow all year and rabbits don't hop around everywhere- ohh, but squirrel can be a nice variant. Don't cook it for as long, or the meat gets hard to chew." She served a second bowl of stew to Chouji, making sure not to spill anything.

Chouji's Brown, Nao, was good friends with Rima, so the four of them had decided to share a fire pit.

"There will be times you won't be allowed to light fires, because of the unwanted attention it can attract," she continued. "Most ninjas bring dehydrated food- you know, the packs you get at Buy-n-Go? The SpagBol's the best."

"The chicken noodle soup is the best," refuted Nao, shaking his head fervently. "I heard they came out with a new flavor. Don't know how I feel about dehydrated steak and fries though..."

It was a warm night, and some of the students had decided to not sleep in the tents, so that they could see the sprinkle of bright stars. Ren heard Nagato talking about the different constellations to anyone who would listen, while Kora was busy recounting 'scary' stories of his invention to his group of friends.

Ren fell asleep between Rima and Nao's sleeping bags, not long after the fire had finally died out, dreaming about skinless bunnies with big, brown eyes. Needless to say, she had slept uncomfortably, partly due to blood-red rabbits still jumping around in her head, and the hard dirt floor that was a far cry from the softness of her mattress at home.

Everyone seemed to be in a grouchy mood, save the rare few like Chouji and Naruto, who were smiling contentedly. After swallowing the remains of her oatmeal, Ren helped Rima pack the tent back up, and roll away the sleeping bags. The older girl then showed her how to deactivate the alarm bells, and Nao demonstrated the correct way to deactivate a complicated kunai and wire trap he had set up the night before.

When everything was cleaned up, and the only clues that they had been camping was the fire pits and the crushed grass, the two Academy instructors lined all the students up.

One of them was Daikoku-sensei, and the other was Iruka-sensei, a brown-haired chuunin, who Ren had seen numerous times in the hallways. He looked nice, but rumor had it that he was the strictest Academy instructor- and that they were going to have him next year.

"It was hard to choose just one team, because a lot of you did very well. I'm proud of you all," grinned Daikoku-sensei.

"After a long moment of reflection on our parts," started Iruka-sensei. "We've decided that the team who showed the most amount of teamwork and camaraderie was... Group One! Good job, Chouji and Nao!"

Ren was so happy she could have hugged her sensei. _Chouji won! Chouji won! Eat that, Kora!_She looked over at her friend, who looked extremely pleased with himself. As she watched him go up to claim his prize, she briefly wondered why she was so happy for him. Shouldn't she have been the _tiniest_ bit disappointed that she didn't win?

* * *

"The first part will be a written examination, to see what you've remembered about everything we've learned since the beginning of the year. We don't expect you to know the answers to every question. Just do your best! This test is easier than the one you'll need to pass if you want to graduate in a couple of years. Think of it as an exercise, a preparation for what's to come. It'll also permit us to see how much you've learned and to take a decision concerning the arrangement of next year's classes.

The second part of the evaluation will focus on your taijutsu skills. We'll pair you up against a comrade and have you two spar. Keep in mind that we don't care who wins or loses. The main objective is to see how well you've mastered the stances and katas we've taught you. We want to see agility, precision and effectiveness.

The third and final part of the evaluation consists of testing your chakra control."

"Sensei, what kind of questions will we be asked?" questioned the girl in the first row, her hand raised high.

"Just a little of everything you've learned so far, Sakura. All the main subjects, like mathematics. As well as the shinobi rules, the student code of conduct, the entire chakra chapter..."

"Sensei! Why won't we be tested in archery?" inquired Hasuo, who looked a little upset.

Hasuo had been really good at archery, and was the only student so far that could hit the farthest target.

"Archery isn't a skill that we ninjas generally use. It's taught more for fun, than anything else. Of course, some ninjas may choose to specialize in archery. Hand to hand combat, however, has to be mastered by anyone who wants to become a ninja. You need to master this skill if you want to survive, and if you want to protect your village."

That night, Ren brushed up all the katas and moves she had learned during the year with the help of her brother. He was graduating next year, but wasn't stressed about it at all. For him, it was inevitable. Graduating, becoming a genin, becoming a chuunin- it was all part of the path that he had chosen. He would rather joke around with his friends and enjoy the time he still had left before being sent out on missions to kill and play hero.

But for Ren, her future seemed as foggy as the bathroom mirror when she came out of the shower. She couldn't afford to waste time, neglecting her studies and her training. She needed to be clever enough, fast enough _and_strong enough to take the place of one of the Rookie 9. It was a bit ironic, wanting to be a part of the Rookie 9, after promising not to change the storyline. But Ren had promised that before befriending Shikamaru and Chouji: before meeting wonderful people she would call her best friends. She never wanted to leave their side, and in order to do that, she would have to become one of the Rookie 9. Or manage to pass the genin test on her own, and change it to become a Rookie 10... or Rookie 12. Or... or make them fail the genin test. Either way, she selfishly had to change it. Did that make her a bad person? She didn't know.

During the following week, she divided her free time between practicing her taijutsu with Tadashi, studying with Shikamaru and Chouji, and trying to learn how to climb a tree using only her chakra.

Tree climbing was considered an advanced chakra control exercise, but Ren didn't really care. She had already practiced, a million times over, the leaf concentration exercises Daikoku-sensei had taught them. Besides, Ren wanted to fully control her chakra before learning any sort of jutsus.

"No. No, your hands need to be like this," she said, rearranging Chouji's fingers so they could properly form the dragon hand seal. "That's right."

"I don't understand how you can go through all of the seals so fast," he sighed, deciding to take a break.

They had been practicing for a little over a half and hour, and it was almost time for dinner.

"When I was younger, Tadashi turned it into a hand game. He used to play it with me so he could learn the seals. I learned them without realizing what I was even doing," she explained, turning back to the tree trunk she was practicing on.

Tree climbing was harder than Ren expected it to be. She had practiced manipulating chakra before, making various objects stick to her hand and fingers. She had even managed to project some of her chakra out of her body, trying to form a shape that resembled strings. She still couldn't get the super thin thread shape she wanted, but she could at least get her chakra to take on the diameter of her index finger.

Projecting chakra out of her body was a bit like stretching out an elastic band. She couldn't get it to expand very far from her body, because at a certain point it would snap back. Too much of this type of practice would leave her mentally exhausted, since it was more of a concentration exercise than anything else.

She had never tried expelling chakra from her feet before today. Concentrating all her chakra to her feet wasn't so difficult. The complicated part was to expel _just_the right amount of chakra, and continue to do so.

"So frustrating," she sighed, trying to clear her mind.

Just like the chakra strings, she needed to have a clear conscience in order to produce the best results. But unlike the chakra strings, the tree climbing attempts drained her of her chakra at a rapid pace.

The day before the end of the year exams, Ren had climbed seven feet of tree trunk before losing control and falling. Miraculously, she had been able to land without hurting herself, but she'd put it down to luck. She'd had more luck with the lake, though.

For some bizarre, unknown reason, Ren could walk on water with much more ease than on the trees. She thought it would have been the opposite, since walking on water meant walking on unstable matter, which meant constantly readjusting the amount of chakra your feet expelled. But yet, compared to the previous exercise, the water seemed a much easier platform.

No matter how many books she read that explained how chakra worked, she would never really understand. Chakra was a living thing, wasn't it? Without life, there wouldn't be chakra, right? She knew that if she chopped down a tree, it's chakra would vanish. But, weren't there also ways to preserve chakra? So that meant that chakra wasn't dependent on the life source, the host. But then why would the tree's chakra vanish if she cut it down? And why were some objects cloaked in chakra?

Gah, chakra really drove her mad, the more she thought about it. Thankfully, she didn't have much more time to think about it. The end of the year exams were tomorrow, and she had just remembered that she had forgotten to study the Second Shinobi War chapter.

* * *

"You have exactly one hour to complete as many questions as you can. Time starts now!"

A few students groaned loudly, but their groans were followed with the unmistakable scratch of pencil of paper.

To be perfectly honest, Ren hadn't studied as much as she should have. Everyone knew that if you failed the written test, you could always catch up on the taijutsu and chakra control sections. But Tadashi had told her that the end of the year exams weren't to see who needed to be held back an extra year, but who could skip on ahead. So really, even Naruto, who was horrible at any written exam and chakra control, would be able to go on ahead to year two.

Ren scanned the questions.

_List the names of Konohagure's Hokages in chronological order. From the Konohagure's North Entrance, what direction would you go to reach the Land of Lightning ? What is the Fourth Hokage most famous for doing?_

They were all fairly easy questions. She answered all the questions, taking her time to respond thoroughly.

The taijutsu portion of the exam was something else. Daikoku-sensei paired her against Ino, and she regrettably let herself take a royal beating. She hoped that her poor taijutsu grade, excellent written scores, and just below average chakra control would end up given her an average grade.

"I know you've wanted additional training, and so I've enlisted the help of one of my dear friends," her dad said seriously.

For some reason, Ren thought he was hiding a smirk, because his chakra emitted an alien smugness that she wasn't used to. Instantly, she was on her guard. The last time Dad's eyes glinted in that way, it was right before he announced that Tadashi would have to go and apologize to one of the Uchihas, following an unfortunate prank that had become an incident.

"Stay here. And- um, please be nice to my friend. He's very... well, you'll see."

He disappeared into the Jounin's Standby Station, a big block of a building that was right next to her school, and reappeared before she could count to ten. Her father wasn't even bothering to hide his grin now, and Ren didn't take long to find out why.

She nearly had a heart attack.

In front of her stood more than five feet of green spandex, that glistened in the sun, forcing her to squint. The man had a bowl haircut, eyebrows denser than the North East forest, and a smile that could light up the entire village of Konoha. More disconcerting than his appearance, was the powerful chakra that seemed to seep through his clothes and skin, radiating a certain glow around him. If she reached out, she was certain that she could _touch_his chakra. There was so much of it in front of her, that yes, she was sure it was palpable. She could almost taste it on her tongue, she could even smell it faintly. This guy was made out of fresh earth, sweat, and determination. That, or he had spent the last hour rolling himself on the ground.

"Meet your new sensei- Maito Gai!"

* * *

A/N:

I'm really interested in what my the readers of Reincarnation of a Water Lily think, because this version of events differs quite a bit from the old one. It's nice to see that some people prefer the old version, and some prefer this one. I'd like to know of what you all think after this chapter, since the story is evolving very differently from this point onward (although there still will be many similarities).

As there isn't as much details on various subjects as I would like, I've taken some liberties with the universe of Naruto, filling in missing gaps and pieces of information that haven't been divulged.

Remember to check my profile page for additional author's notes/updates/previews!

Big thanks to everyone who took the time to read and review, and a special thanks to xXKaminari-TsubasaXx, for your lovely review. I couldn't thank you privately, so I'm doing it now! (:


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